When Wayne Mabry started putting on silver-and-black war paint and body armor and affecting a menacing demeanor on Raiders game days as his alter ego “Violator” nearly 30 years ago, it would have been naive of him to think nobody would notice.
He just never dreamed that Howie Long, the Ford Motor Company and the Pro Football Hall of Fame would notice, too.
The uber Raiders’ supporter is one of six NFL superfans who have been nominated for the Ford Hall of Fans. The three top vote-getters will be flown into Super Bowl LV in Tampa, Florida, and honored in a display at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.
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“Just the way it happened is what I will always remember,” said the retired 64-year-old union carpenter from his home near Riverside, California, who plans to spend Sundays (and the occasional Monday night) in Las Vegas once fans are let inside Allegiant Stadium after COVID-19.
He said a film crew showed up at his home to interview him for the Hall of Fans website when there was an unexpected knock on the door.